How To: Food Prep & Prevent Food Waste

My tips and tricks for preventing food waste while food prepping!

If you don't already, this is your sign to start prepping food for the week. I think food prep can get a bad rep and be related to prepping 10 containers of plain chicken and rice... that is not the food prep I'm talking about. Food prep for me, is chopping up all your veggies and storing them in easily assessable containers, making 1 or 2 meals to have in a pinch throughout the week, and maybe even making a healthy dessert or protein ball to have on hand as a snack when you are running out the door.

I just posted a video on my Youtube channel sharing what I bought on my latest grocery trip along with recipes for foods I prepped for the week. I took you through my process of prepping my produce and much more along with tips on food storage.

https://youtu.be/Eoz4xwiVLHE

Food prep is setting yourself up for success. There is nothing worse than being busy and not having time to make a meal because you have nothing prepared and so you resort to junk food that leaves you feeling awful and not supplying you with energy!

Here are some of my tips that help me when I am food prepping and help me to not waste food throughout the week.

1) Be Realistic With What You Buy

This is something that took me a while to implement, but trust me it helps! When you are writing a grocery list, or even just while you are at the store it can be easy to be a little unrealistic. Whether this means you buy way to many vegetables because in the moment you want to be super healthy or you want to buy all of these different types of sauces that you haven't seen before. Although in the moment it may seem like the best move, throughout the week you may not have enough time to eat all these foods because they will go bad.

I try and be realistic and think about what I typically want to eat throughout my busy week. Yes, making 5 gourmet meals would be nice, but it may not be realistic because of the limited time you have. Instead I would choose 1-2 more timely meals to make and then get a variety of quicker on-the-go style foods.

2) Have Proper Food Storage

Having proper food storage has made a big difference for me. For one, I feel so much more organized and put together when all of my food is in containers that I can easily see what is in them. It also makes it so much easier to grab foods in a hurry. I prefer using glass containers for most of my food storage. One of my favorite brands is Weck (these have an amazing seal and keep my foods fresh). Most of my other glass containers I have accumulated over time from places like Target and TJ-Maxx. I try and get a variety of different shapes and sizes to help accommodate for the foods I'm buying and optimal fridge storage. Another favorite food storage brand is Stasher, I love their reusable bags, they are not only great for the environment, but also make getting and storing my food so much easier (they also double as great storage for food on the go). I will be making a blog post soon sharing my favorite food storage products.

3) Know How To Store Certain Foods

This can be extremely helpful in terms on helping your produce last the longest. Here are a few tips I have learned in storing certain foods:

Apples

Best to cut and store in a container with lemon juice squeezed on them, this keeps them from turning brown.

Avocados

Once to your preferred ripeness, store in the fridge. I have found that they last many days longer this way.

Carrots

Store carrots in a container submerged in water to prolong their freshness for nearly 3-4 weeks.

Cucumbers

When storing cucumbers, place a paper towel at the bottom of the container, this will absorb moisture and keep them from going bad and soggy.

4) Make a grocery list that will allow the same foods to be used for multiple recipes.

Being someone who buys groceries for just themselves to eat, it can be hard to not over buy when trying to make different meals. Here is a trick I found that keeps me from a) spending way too much grocery shopping and b) buying too much food and not being able to eat it before it goes bad.

Planning your meals / making a grocery list that has the same food being used in different ways. Here is an example, If I buy carrots at the store I can use them as a snack on the go with hummus, and I can also use them chopped up in a stir fry I am making for dinner. Buying foods that are versatile make all the difference. If you have trouble thinking of different ways to use the same food, simply search "recipes using ..." and seeing different ways they can be used.